First Steps
by ladyofeverything
Summary: Part of the Cobert Summer smutfest - except with no smut. Robert takes his fiancée out for a walk.


"How much further is it?" Cora asked timidly, holding gingerly to the arm of her fiancé. The grand house had just disappeared from view behind their backs, making this the furthest they had ever gone together alone. Somehow the realisation made her feel very self-conscious.

"Not much further," Robert replied. Ever the gentleman, he slowed down his steps, turning to look at Cora. "Are you fatigued? Would you rather turn back?"

"Oh no," Cora exclaimed. She smiled shyly at the handsome young lord. "I'm not tired and I am in no hurry to return to the house."

She had spent the entire morning with her future mother-in-law, ostensibly being shown the house and introduced to the staff, but in reality most of the time had been spent with Cora being lectured about her own inferiority. Lady Grantham had made it very clear that the list of things she would have to learn before she could ever become the lady of the house was long indeed.

When Robert had showed up at noon and offered to take her for a walk to see the lake, Cora had been nothing but grateful, even though she suspected that he had only taken pity of her. Usually it was his father who encouraged to two to take walks together in order to get to know each other better, but he had left for London two days ago and she had not spent a moment alone with Robert since his departure.

Cora knew her fiancé did not care for her much, but she knew him to be a kind and good-hearted man, and though he said little to oppose his mother in person, he often looked troubled when the older woman would take to openly berating Cora in his presence.

Now he looked at her with a little uncertainty, a hint of colour rising to his cheeks.

"I-I hope this morning hasn't been too hard for you," he said, clearly a little embarrassed by the whole subject, but determined to speak none the less. "My mother is…she can be quite blunt when she has something on her mind, and I am very sorry if you found any of her words hurtful." By this time they had both stopped walking and stood facing each other in the middle of the path. "I heard some of your conversation earlier when you were passing the library," Robert continued, looking down at his shoes, "I did not mean to eavesdrop but I was there writing letters and my mother's voice…"

Cora placed her hand on Robert's arm, silencing him.

"There is no harm done," she said gently, giving Robert a sweet smile when he lifted his eyes to look at her. "And while I appreciate your mother's efforts to educate me in the ways of this house, I'm grateful for your company this afternoon," she added, hoping to convey how much she appreciated the rescue, without actually going as far as calling it a rescue.

Robert smiled back at her, relaxing a little. Then he offered her his arm again, indicating that they should keep moving.

"Don't let Mama get to you," he said kindly once they had begun walking again. "She can be harsh but when you get to know her you will come to realise she means well. She truly does."

Cora rather doubted whether she would ever get to know her future mother-in-law well enough to realise that.

"I have a strong-willed and opinionated mother, too," she said out loud after a short silence, but the smile she attempted didn't quire reach her eyes. "It will be alright," she added without looking at Robert.

It was at least partly true. She was not sure she would ever get used to the way Lady Grantham spoke to her, but right now, walking with Robert while holding on to his arm, listening to his kind assurances, she did feel everything would turn out alright. Somehow he had the ability of making her believe so even without really trying.

They walked on in silence for some time and Cora began wondering again how much further still they would be going. She was not tired of walking, but the thought of being alone with Robert, so far from any watchful eyes, felt both frightening and exciting to her. Frightening, because the situation was still so foreign to her, but exciting because, despite the materialistic reasons of their engagement, she actually had formed a true attachment towards the gentle young lord. Even knowing he was marrying her for money, she could not help but feel utterly besotted with the kind and handsome man who was to be her husband, and she had not completely given up hoping that perhaps one day he could return at least some of the attachment she felt.

"We are almost at there now," Robert said after a few more minutes of silent walking, and as Cora looked on, she could see a small lake opening up before her eyes within a short distance. The beautiful sight instantly brought a genuine smile back to her face.

"Oh it looks beautiful," she sighed, letting go of Robert's arm as she took a few quick steps ahead towards the edge of the water. It was a sight unlike anything she had yet seen on the grounds of Downton, because here the vegetation had been left to grow seemingly without any interference by human hands, allowing nature to bloom in its full glory. After admiring the view for a moment she turned back with glowing eyes to face Robert who had stopped a short distance behind her. He looked somewhat startled when she addressed him.

"Yes, very beautiful," he said at length, but his eyes were not on the glimmering surface of the lake as he spoke, they were on Cora who, unbeknownst to herself, looked absolutely radiant in her white summer dress as the sun cast its rays on her face, making her eyes shine as invitingly as the sparkling water behind her. Finally realizing that Robert was looking at her, Cora blushed, casting those mesmerizing eyes down modestly.

"I'm sorry, Miss Levinson, I didn't mean to…" Robert said hastily, though he was hardly sure what he was apologising for.

Cora sighed as the moment was lost. For a second she had thought he had been admiring her, but the use of her surname soon brought her back to reality. They had been engaged for three weeks and still he rarely called her by her Christian name.

"Please do not apologize," she said flatly. "And you don't have to call me Miss Levinson anymore. It won't be my name for much longer."

"Of course," Robert said, joining her again by her side and taking her gloved hand into his, bringing it hastily up to his lips before softly pronouncing the name "Cora."

Despite her good sense, she felt a shiver run through her body at the unexpected contact. No matter how little the small gesture must have meant to him, to Cora there was still something sweet about the way he aimed to please her and keep her happy even while his own heart was not in it.

Contrary to what Cora believed, though, Robert himself was still feeling quite flustered after having been caught staring. It was not even the fact that she had noticed his gaze, but he was still struck by the effect her glowing face had had on him.

Of course he had noticed her beauty the very moment they had been introduced, and been pleased with her appearance, but it had been with a sense of duty that he had embarked on the courtship and engagement that had followed. He had had very little time to think much further than securing her hand in marriage for the good of Downton.

Now that it was all settled and a wedding date had been set, Robert was only starting to find out what he would be gaining in the marriage besides a large fortune, and day by day he found himself growing more and more pleased with the choice he had made.

Lost in his thoughts, Robert lagged behind again as he let Cora hurry ahead towards the lake, allowing himself eventually to lose his track of thought as he watched her run with light steps all the way to the shore, lifting her skirts a little as she did so.

She was so young and vibrant and full of life, and Robert could not help but smile at the sight in front of him.

Robert knew he was young, too, but it had been a while since he had actually felt that way. Such had been the last two years leading up to this engagement. While other young men of his age had spent their time in London, seeking all forms of entertainment, he had been spending endless hours with his father, going through ledgers and trying to figure out where to spend less and where to gain more income in order to save Downton. That had been his only occupation until a few months ago when the idea of seeking a convenient marriage for his son had suddenly entered Lord Grantham's mind as the last possible solution. In reality, though, Robert suspected that the idea had always been there, stored away as the last resort for when nothing else was left to be done. Or perhaps his father had simply wanted to wait for Robert to come fully of age before bestowing the burden on him – for of course marrying an uncultured American heiress was to be considered a burden.

And yet right now, watching Cora giggle with delight as she peered down at her own crooked reflection in the water, the impending marriage felt nothing like a burden to Robert. On the contrary, he finally felt like there might still be youth left in him too.

Walking up to Cora with a smile on his face he took her hand and this time boldly held it in his. She looked startled at first but then shyly returned the smile.

"This is one of my favourite places in the summer," Robert spoke, indicating the lake with a motion of his hand. "It's just close enough to walk to, and yet far enough to give you a little distance when you need it." He paused, blushed a little, and then continued. "It is possible you may feel like you need it yet before you get to know my mother better."

Cora chuckled a little but then checked herself, squeezing Robert's hand lightly.

"Thank you for showing me the way here," she said. "It's so lovely I might come here just for the pleasure of it."

"There is a boat too," Robert pointed out, pleased that his idea of going to the lake had turned out to be a good one. He directed Cora's attention to a small wooden shed a few yards to their left.

The shed had seen better days and was, in fact, on the list of the many improvements that Cora's money would eventually make possible on the estate, but it had a certain rustic charm to it even now as it stood partly hidden by untended foliage.

Ever since they had been forced to let the under-gardener go and decided to focus only on the upkeep of the main gardens, the entire lake and its surroundings had been left for natural growth, to a surprisingly pleasing effect, as Robert could now see.

In fact, watching it all through the admiration and excitement in Cora's eyes, Robert rather thought he had never seen the lakeside look so pretty. Still, he felt the need to explain the lack of upkeep:

"It does all look a little dishevelled right now, but we do have plans for improvements," he explained as they walked towards the shed.

"Oh I wish you wouldn't," Cora exclaimed. "I mean, I so like the way it all looks now," she added, afraid she had offended Robert.

They stopped as they reached the shed and Robert turned to fully face Cora again.

"Then I wouldn't dream of changing it," he said sincerely. "In fact, you can decide what to do with it once we are married. I want you to think of this as your lake."

"My lake?" Cora repeated, her face lighting up. Robert nodded, pleased with her reaction.

"My parents never come here," he explained. "It has been my refuge for years and if you truly like it then I want it to be yours too. And besides," he added, venturing a little smile, "I quite like it this way too."

"In that case I will be happy to consider it my lake," she replied. Then, blushing a little, she added: "or our lake."

"Yes, our lake, if you will," Robert said, his eyes falling on Cora's, and as he stood there looking at her, he was struck by a sudden thought that if he had not already proposed to her, he might have been moved to do so at that moment, even regardless of her fortune.

Then, struck by another idea, he cleared his throat and spoke again:

"Miss Levinson…I mean, Cora." He paused, his cheeks reddening.

"Yes?" She was looking at her expectantly.

"May I…that is…would it be too forward of me to kiss you?" His face was now the colour of beetroot, but he relaxed when he saw the smile that appeared on Cora's lips.

"I don't think it would be too forward, Robert," she said softly, her cheeks colouring as well. "We are engaged after all."

Robert nodded his head, pleased to hear her speak his name. Then he leaned forward and pressed his lips gently against Cora's.

They were soft and tasted vaguely of something Robert could not recognize. Just to be sure, he leaned in again, this time savouring Cora's lips a moment longer. When he pulled away, his eyes met Cora's and, as if on cue, they both smiled. Robert was relieved she appeared not to have been offended by the second kiss, and as he began leading Cora back towards the house, he made a silent resolution to find further opportunities to explore the taste of her lips. Just to satisfy his curiosity, of course.


End file.
